How to Create a Customer Invoice

Create, confirm, send, and reconcile a customer invoice in Vendra Accounting — from adding lines through to registering payment and issuing a credit note.

Updated June 2026 Accounting module 5 min read

Customer invoices in Vendra are created inside the Accounting module. Once posted, an invoice generates the corresponding accounting entries automatically — debiting the receivable and crediting the revenue account — so your books stay accurate without any manual journal work.

This guide covers the full cycle: creating the invoice, applying taxes, confirming, sending by email, registering a payment, reconciling with the bank, and issuing a credit note if a reversal is needed.

Step-by-step: creating a customer invoice

1

Go to Accounting → Customers → Invoices and click New

From the main menu, open the Accounting module. Under the Customers menu, select Invoices. Click the New button in the top-left to open a blank invoice form.

2

Select the customer

Type the customer name in the Customer field and select from the dropdown. If the customer does not exist yet, type their name and choose Create and Edit to add a new contact without leaving the invoice.

3

Set the invoice date and payment terms

Enter the invoice date — this determines when the accounting entry is posted. Select the applicable payment terms (for example, Net 30 or Immediate). Payment terms control the due date shown on the invoice and in the aged receivables report.

4

Add invoice lines — product, quantity, price, and tax

Click Add a Line for each item. Select the product, enter the quantity and unit price. The tax field fills automatically from the product's tax configuration. You can override the tax on any individual line if needed.

5

Taxes are applied automatically — review the breakdown

Scroll to the bottom of the invoice to see the subtotal, the tax amount per tax group, and the grand total. If you are VAT-registered, confirm that the correct rate is showing before posting.

6

Click Confirm to post the invoice

Clicking Confirm locks the invoice, assigns it a sequence number (for example INV/2026/00042), and posts the accounting entry. The status changes from Draft to Posted. Confirmed invoices cannot be edited — use a credit note to make corrections.

7

Send the invoice by email — PDF is generated automatically

Click Send and Print. Vendra generates a PDF of the invoice and opens an email composer pre-filled with the customer's address. Review the message, then click Send. The customer receives the invoice PDF as an attachment.

8

Register Payment when the customer pays

Open the posted invoice and click Register Payment. Select the payment journal (Bank, Cash, or M-Pesa), enter the payment date and amount, then click Pay. The invoice is marked In Payment or Paid depending on whether the bank statement has been reconciled.

9

Reconcile with the bank statement

Go to Accounting → Accounting → Bank Statements and import or enter the bank statement. Vendra matches the incoming payment line against the invoice payment automatically. Confirm the match to mark the invoice as fully reconciled.

10

Issue a credit note using Add Credit Note

If a refund or reversal is needed, open the posted invoice and click Add Credit Note. Choose a reason, set the credit note date, and confirm. The credit note reverses the original accounting entry and can be applied against a future invoice or paid out directly.

If you create invoices directly from a confirmed Sales Order, click Create Invoice on the order. Vendra pre-fills all lines from the order, saving data entry and keeping the sales and accounting records linked.

Partial payments and follow-up

If a customer pays in instalments, register each payment separately. The invoice shows the outstanding balance after each partial payment. Use Accounting → Reporting → Aged Partner Balance to see all overdue invoices at a glance and prioritise collections.

FAQ

Invoice questions

Common questions about invoicing in Vendra.

Contact support
Can I edit an invoice after it has been confirmed?
Confirmed invoices are locked to protect the accounting records. To make a correction, issue a credit note to reverse the original invoice, then create a new corrected invoice. This keeps your audit trail clean and compliant.
How does Vendra handle VAT on invoices?
Each product has a default tax assigned. When you add the product to an invoice line, the tax is applied automatically. The invoice footer shows a breakdown by tax group. All VAT collected is captured in the VAT report under Accounting → Reporting for KRA filing.
What happens if a customer pays only part of the invoice?
Register a payment for the amount received. The invoice status changes to Partial and the outstanding balance is displayed. You can register further payments against the same invoice until the full amount is settled. Partial payments appear in the Aged Receivables report so you can follow up.

Ready to invoice your customers?

Vendra handles invoicing, VAT, and bank reconciliation automatically. Get started today.